The state chronicle. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1883-1893, 1887-01-20

/ ton:
AT meeting of Farmers Club No /.
OF Swift Creek township, Wake county,
held January 18th. the President, vice
4 President and Secretary were instructed
TO attend meeting of the farmers called
by the State Board of Agriculture in Raj
elgh on January 18th, 1887, and We're in
struCred 10 present 10 said meeting for its
consideration the following resolution.
RESOLVED, That the necessities Of the
/ farmers of North Carolina require the
establishment of an Agricultural College
and that the proceeds of the laud-serp
fund donated by the Federal Congress
OF 1852 and which has been applied 10 the
State University should be transferred
and applied IL the support Of said college
RESOLVED 2d. That the State depart
ment of agriculture should be re-organ-
lied on such a basis as shall give the con
troll and management of the same into the
hands of practical farmers and thus bring
II into closer union with the farming in
terests of the State.
This was received with "A shower of
| seconds.
MIR. Battle came forward aud said that
| he thought before this meeting should vote
! on this resolution that the farmers here
should read the Land Scrip Act. He hardly
| thought the gentleman had read il him
self. If be had he was asking the conven-
tion 20 do a thing not in accord with that
| act.
Mr.. Mcdonald, of Cabarrus, spoke
, strongly in favor of the resolution.
Mr.. Turner, o. Granville made very
amusing speech and very telling one.
He was a farmers son and his father had
a little industrial school of his own. His
mother was a Phrenologist, but she made
her application to different portion of the
body to that which the scientific Phrenol-
ogist do in these days. and when she agi-
tated the memory bump the boy was a
long time forgetting it, What he came
here for was to learn something that
would benefit the farmers. He had lis
tened to these elegant speeches, but what
the farmers wanted to know was whether
the oyster surveying, the fish Matching
and the mlne exploring was going to make
taxes less or make the farmers products
bring more.
The question was called on the resolu-
tions and they passed by very large ma
jOrity.
DR.. Sanderlin was called and made one
of hi most interesting talks. The greatest
question of the present day, he said, is
how shall We lift the farming interests to
Its former standard of profit and useful
ness!
Col. l.. l.. Polk, the progressive editor
OF the Progressive Farmer, was present
but he was too modest to speak, and a
general call for Polk i, half dozen times
failed to bring him to his feet. He was
busy taking notes and was an interested
listener. Finally, in obedience to call
from the Chairman, he arose and made a
short but very interesting Speech in which
he said he had not been canvassing the
State against the University and the Agri-
cultural Department.
Messrs. GRAY, S, Banton, Brooks, Rob
inson, Upchurch and Moore, who are mem
bers of the Board of Agriculture, were
present but they did not do any of the
talking.
Mr.. j. c. Ellington, from Johnston,
made very practical talk. He said it
had been claimed that the Agricultural
Department had saved to the farmers of
the State H. arly $500, 900 in buying fer
farmers were all very rich or else they
owed the Department an everlasting dt bt
of gratitude for keeping them out of the
| poor house.
Mr.. McIver, of Orange, came as Il rep
resentative of the Oaks Farmers Club aud
SAID he came with instructions from his
club. He read the following resolution
, which he offered for the consideration of
} the meeting:
Tine Farmers Club at Oaks, Orange
county, n. c., respectfully asks:
That the department of agriculture
ought TO be re organized so that the good
influence and good teachings of that vau-
: able institution may be seen and felt on
J our farms, to renoyate, improve and vita
llZe them.
If it is asked how it can be done, we
} suggest, till a better plan may be devised,
, that at least fifty per cent Of the entire
: revenue Of the department be distributed
, IN small sums as premiums to farmers in
different parts of the State who may un-
) dertake, at their own expense, to conduct
model farms or experiment farms under
the direction Of the department, the prem
iums to be awarded in each case by ar
3 Agricultural Club in the neighborhood OF
the farm and organized under instructions
2 from the department. By such ar
3 rangement a system Of Agricultural Club:
. and model and experiment farms, would
grow up over the State that might we'll be
$ called the Farmers College,
9 This resolution did not pass.
Mr.. Willis r. Williams, Master of th'
4 State Grange and member of the Boart
of Agriculture, encouraged the farmers t
D organize and stand together in all efforts
: that would promote their best interests
Mr.. Will ans believes in the Department
4 but he is earnest in his advocacy of al
e economical administration
o Capt W. H. Kitchen, of Scotland Neck
e among other things, said: ''If had th
organization of the Agricultural Board
e would abolish the Governor, l would abol
ish President Battle, and l would abolis
S every ex-officio member of the Board.
d wouldn't let Gov. Scales stay on tina
: Board two days-not that he is not quail
9 fed, but because he is Governor of Mort
e Carolina, and l would want him to b
). Governor in fact. | wouldn't let DR.. Bal
d tie stay on that Board two ,ninutes-n
d that he is not qualified, but would lt
y him remain the President of the grandes
r University south of Mason and Dixon
It line DR.. Battle never plowed a furro
l. in his life would have the Board con
IS posed of farmers-good, practical, ever
q day farmers.
d Rev r. O. Burton said that one gres
e reason of the hard times was owing to tt
present n ional Banking System.
It this Mr.. Burton was right and the CHRO.
le ICLE heartily agrees with his diagnosis
e The case.
~ SECOND SESSION.
The Farmers Convention met again
n, O'Clock Wednesday, President French